CED: eye of the storm or a solution at hand?

We were to go to the CED office in Capelle aan den IJssel with a dozen Vloerwerkers to demand a meeting. That was the plan. That was what we were organizing. A Vloerwerker had already visited twice to properly map out their office. CED ignores us? Let them ignore this. That week also our first calendarbomb dropped. We were no longer just disrupting first-line operators, we were disrupting management workflow. And now this. Of course as Vloerwerk we often walk into offices or companies  and there is nothing illegal about it. However, it remains an exciting form of action. And the tension, the fear, the anticipation, it increased noticeably.

Then we receive the message that the management of CED has sent the worker in question an email. 3 days before our visit was scheduled. This e-mail includes an invitation for a meeting. So instead of escalating further, we need to rethink our plans. Developments have overtaken our schedule and we need to come together to re-analyze the situation and formulate a strategy. The campaign has therefore not been stopped and has not yet been won. The news did cause a big discharge in Vloerwerk.

The mail from CED means a tactical victory for Vloerwerk. CED’s strategy was primarily a radio silience. Our strategy consisted and consists of a growing alliance carrying out legal but disruptive and increasing actions on the infrastructure of CED combined with growing physical actions at their Amsterdam office and publications online and finally there are the autonomous solidarity actions. In writing, we offered CED a way out by means of negotiatoins with us three times. Their strategy now appears to have failed. The radio silence with which they tried to influence our uncertainty has been broken. Instead of our insecurity, they have boosted our self-confidence. Vloerwerk has effectively become twice as strong in this campaign as it was at the end of 2020.

So what next? We have told CED that we are a collective and that if they want to talk about the actions they should turn to Vloerwerk. But we must not let ourselves be tricked and let our momentum slip away. Not arguments but actions are important. The calendarbomb and other actions (there is still so much) will continue until we win or stop the fight. Anyone who has already participated, no matter how small, can be proud of themselves and, above all, of each other. But we are not there yet so we call on you to be ready and participate again. The next collective calendarbomb will drop on May 12.

Do you want to join? Call Sjerp on 0616541143 or email info@vloerwerk.org.